OVER THE COUNTER: Don’t lose sight of eye health

Tuesday

If you vowed this New Year’s holiday to start an exercise routine, there’s yet another reason to lace up and get moving: It turns out that working out may also help keep your eyes in good shape.

Recent research by the University of California, Los Angeles, has found that regular vigorous exercise could cut one’s risk of developing glaucoma by 73 percent.

This is yet more proof that eye health is influenced by many factors – some of which we have some control over, such as what we eat and drink, how much we exercise, how clean we keep our hands, how careful we are around sunlight, the supplements we take, and how often we get our medical checkups, both for our body and our eyes. All can all affect our vision.

But, first, let’s be honest and talk about what’s out of your control. Genetics, accidents and age have a say in how well you see and how likely you are to develop some eye diseases or injuries. Also, if you’re wearing glasses now for sight problems, only surgery may be able to change that – it doesn’t matter how many carrots you eat.

It’s also true that if you’re an older adult, you’re probably already noticing your vision is changing. By age 40, you’ll likely start finding it difficult to focus on close-up objects – such as the letters on your cell phone screen – because of a common and annoying condition called presbyopia, which occurs when the lenses in the eyes thicken. Into the 50s, this gets worse, and in the following years people also become at greater risk for developing cataracts. By the 60s, the chance of developing a host of diseases increases. These include glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy and macular degeneration, which can lead to blindness.

But the key here is the word “risk.” Fortunately, the right lifestyle choices may help stave off some of these conditions, and improve overall eye health.

Besides starting a workout routine that includes vigorous exercise – as that UCLA research found – eating a diet rich in omega-3 fatty acids, zinc, compounds known as lutein and zeaxanthin, and antioxidants can help reduce the severity of problems such as glaucoma. We all know about carrots, and there is truth they’re good for your eyes. They contain beta carotene, which the body converts into vitamin A, a necessary nutrient for maintaining good eye health. But other vitamins are important, such as vitamin E and vitamin C. These have been shown to potentially help prevent eye degeneration.

How does this translate into diet? We recommend eating more green and orange vegetables such as spinach or kale and pumpkin or carrots, and fruits such as blueberries and grapefruits. These combinations are good sources of antioxidants, lutein and zeaxanthin. Also, eat more beans and lean meats for zinc, and more nuts and fish for omega-3 fatty acids.

Keeping a healthy body weight and avoiding smoking can also help maintain your vision and ward off diseases. This is because conditions such as high blood pressure, diabetes and obesity can harm the tiny blood vessels in your eyes.

Some supplements may also contribute to eye health. If your diet is low in any of the vitamins and other nutrients we mentioned, taking them in a high-quality pill form may be worthwhile.

The same goes for some other vitamins critical to eye health, such as vitamin B-1 and other B vitamins, vitamin D, and certain phytochemical antioxidants, found in herbal supplements such as ginkgo biloba or bilberry. Fish and flax seed oils can also be good sources of omega- 3 fatty acids.

Sleep – the much overlooked component of good health – is also important for our vision, because it gives our eyes time to rest, lubricate and clean themselves, according to the American Academy of Ophthalmology.

Beyond diet, sleep and exercise, a few lifestyle factors can influence eye health. This includes time spent in front of a phone or computer. Staring for hours on end in front of so-called blue light – which comes from these electronic screens –not only can cause eye strain and dryness, but also increase the risk of developing macular degeneration.

Similarly, treat your eyes like you would treat your skin when out in the sun by wearing sunglasses that block at least 99 percent of UV-A and UV-B radiation. In addition, for every 20 minutes you look at a computer screen or other close-up object, look away for at least 20 seconds at something about 20 feet away to prevent eye strain.

Visiting an eye doctor regularly will also help catch problems early. A dilated eye exam is the only way to catch early signs of glaucoma, diabetes-related eye disease and macular degeneration, according to the National Eye Institute. Finally, and it sounds simple, but avoid touching your eyes with anything that’s not clean, including your hands, contact lenses or washcloths.

While eye health might not seem exciting, it’s the last thing you want to lose sight of – literally and figuratively.

Gary Kracoff has a degree in naturopathic medicine and is a registered pharmacist and John Walczyk is a compounding pharmacist at Johnson Compounding & Wellness in Waltham, Mass. For more information, visit www.naturalcompounder.com. Readers with questions about natural or homeopathic medicine, compounded medications, or health in general can email gary@naturalcompounder.com or call 781-893- 3870.

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